'Helping Those Who Can't Help Themselves' at Root of Connerton Movement

A group of parents, former teachers and others concerned about what they say amount to bully tactics by the Connerton Elementary administration has spoken out a lot recently, from a that coincided with a visit from Superintendent Heather Fiorentino to to voice their concerns publicly before the board.

Some incidents they refer to when voicing their concerns are not recent, so why speak out now?

It's because they want to help other teachers who can't speak up for fear of losing their jobs, Cathy Brown said.

"I was so emotinally exhausted at the time, I just gave up," Brown said. "But we're still friends with a lot of people there and they don't have a voice. They need a voice."

"Teachers can't speak for themselves, it would be employment suicide," said Michelle Grady, a Connerton resident who calls herself "a friend of Sanders Elementary."

Staff and students from Sanders were moved to the newly built Connerton Elementary when Sanders was closed at the end of the 2009-10 school year.

She's had Connerton teachers crying in her driveway, Grady said in a

"Sometimes you have to help those who can't help themselves," Grady said.

"They're afraid and that's sad," Brown said.

Teachers and staff are "coming out of the woodwork" to share their stories now that they're hearing this publicly, Lopez said.

"We're the history book of this school, which is unfortunate," Lopez said.

Assistant Superintendent David Scanga said that official surveys taken of the entire current Connerton staff show approval of the administration as high as 80 to 85 percent.

"We know there's support for the administration," Scanga said.

There is no timeline for addressing the concerns brought up at a recent meeting between some of the school's teachers and Superintendent Heather Fiorentino, Scanga said.

The answers will come when the district has gathered enough information, he said.

"We're going to take everyone's position into account," Scanga said.